The present invention relates to a cleaning system for cleaning fluid-conducting tubing. The invention is particularly useful in a condenser for cleaning the tubing of a heat-exchanger used in such a condenser, and the invention is therefore described below with respect to this application.
The invention is especially directed to the type of cleaning system described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,865,121 and 5,176,204. Such cleaning systems include balls circulated with the fluid through the tubing from its upstream side to its downstream side, separator means for separating the balls from the fluid at the downstream side of the tubing, and recirculating means for recirculating the balls back to the upstream side of the tubing. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,176,204, the separator is in the form of a hollow perforated tube enclosed within a housing connected by a passageway to the downstsream side of the tubing. In one embodiment, the hollow perforated tube is carried by an ejector operable to eject the balls accumulated on the outer surface of the perforated tube into the upstream side of the tubing; and in a second embodiment, the separator further includes two valves, in the inlet and outlet sides of the collector housing, open by actuators to eject the balls into the upstream side of the tubing.
Systems of this type generally require a separate reservoir for adding balls to the system or removing balls from the system for replacement purposes, and also for viewing the condition of the balls in the system. Such a reservoir, including the accompanying valves for selectively connecting the reservoir into and out of the system, significantly increases the overall cost of the system.